11379 - Medieval History (M-Z)

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course students will have a general critical knowledge of the medieval era, grasp its various components and be familiar with the historians’ trends and latest research avenues, tackling at least some of the most important sources upon which the Middle Ages have been defined. They will be able to state issues and interact critically, with texts and data to hand. They will have come to appreciate the importance of setting categories, languages and concepts in a long-term framework. They will be able to talk about the basic bibliography, showing they can read and critically understand it, linking up to issues discussed in class. They will read history texts in at least one language besides Italian and, in speaking, use the appropriate technical terminology.

Course contents

The Middle Ages: a thousand years of history

The course aims to provide a basic knowledge of the medieval period and will be divided into two parts.

The first part addresses topics and problems related to the very definition of the historical period and to the structure of the sources available for the reconstruction of those centuries. The course will focus on the following topics:

• Post-imperial Western Europe
• The formation of the Roman-Barbarian kingdoms
• The collapse of the Roman Mediterranean
• The rise and crisis of the Carolingian Empire
• Post-Carolingian systems of power
• The Papacy and the Empire, the Church Reform, and new forms of religiosity
• The formation of the so-called national kingdoms (12th–15th centuries)

In the second part of the course, a thematic in-depth study of Italian comuni and signorie (lordships) is presented, particularly from a political and institutional perspective. The evolution of the historiographical question on the comuni and signorie will be briefly discussed, and then the institutional phases and general political issues will be examined in depth.

Readings/Bibliography

Part I)

All students, attending and non-attending, must study

 

1. the textbook: L. Provero - M. Vallerani, Storia medievale, Firenze, Le Monnier, 2022 (SECOND EDITION) EXCEPT: Chapter 7 of Part 3 (pp. 304–326) and Chapter 2.3 of Part 4 (pp. 368–379)
   
   
2.  the powerpoints used in the lesson and available on Virtuale
   
   The written test will be based on them. 
   

 

Part II)

 Attending students (those who attend at least 75% of the lectures) will have to prepare their oral examination on:

1. lecture notes and materials discussed in class
2. Chapter 7 of Part 3 (pp. 304–326) and Chapter 2.3 of Part 4 (pp. 368–379) of the textbook
   
   

Non-attending students must prepare their oral examination on:

1. Chapter 7 of Part 3 (pp. 304–326) and Chapter 2.3 of Part 4 (pp. 368–379) of the textbook
2. Il comune medievale. Istituzioni e conflitti politici, a cura di L. Tanzini, Clueb, Bologna 2022
3. I. Lazzarini, L'Italia degli Stati territoriali. Secoli XIII-XV, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2003

 

Teaching methods

Frontal lectures: presentation of the topics and in-depth study of some particular aspects. Some sources, provided in Italian translation, will also be used and commented on in class.

Assessment methods

It is recommended to check exam dates in advance on the professor's website, so as not to confuse the dates with those of the Medieval History (A-L) course.

All students, whether attending or not, must take a written test and an oral test.

--> To be admitted to the oral test it is necessary to have taken the written test and passed it with a score of at least 18/30.

--> The written test and the oral test can be taken in the same call or in different calls.

The written test is designed to test your knowledge of the textbook and of Part 1 of the course, and consists of 6 open questions, requiring precise answers and good synthesis skills, marked from 0 to 5 points. The maximum possible result is 30/30.

Therefore, the following will be assessed:

• The mastery of the contents
• The ability to synthesise and analyse themes and concepts
• The ability to express oneself in writing in an adequate manner and with language appropriate to the subject matter.

The student's attainment of an organic vision of the themes addressed by the textbook, their critical use, a good mastery of expression and the use of specific vocabulary will be assessed with marks of excellence.

A mnemonic knowledge of the subject, together with the ability to synthesise and analyse in correct, but not always appropriate, language, will lead to fair marks.

Inadequate training and/or inappropriate language — albeit in a context of minimal knowledge of the examination material — will lead to grades below satisfactory.

Inadequate training, inappropriate language, lack of orientation within the textbook content will result in a failing grade.

The oral test is a free conversation aimed at ascertaining the knowledge acquired. The interview will assess the knowledge acquired, the ability to synthesise and the critical skills developed by the student.

The assessment of the test will take into account, in particular, the student's ability to orientate themselves within the examination material in order to extract useful information that will allow them to illustrate themes and problems and to link them together.

Therefore, the following will be assessed:

• The mastery of the contents
• The ability to synthesise and analyse themes and concepts
• The ability to express oneself adequately and in language appropriate to the subject matter.

The student's achievement of an organic vision of the themes, together with their critical use, a good mastery of expression and specific language will be assessed with marks of excellence.

A mnemonic knowledge of the subject, together with the ability to synthesise and analyse in correct, but not always appropriate, language, will lead to fair marks.

Inadequate training and/or inappropriate language — albeit in the context of a minimal knowledge of the examination material — will lead to grades below satisfactory.

Formative deficiencies, inappropriate language, lack of orientation within the bibliographic materials will result in a failing grade. The maximum mark for the oral examination is 30/30. The final examination mark will be the average of the written and oral examination results.

At the teacher's discretion, an honourable mention may be added.

 

During the academic year, exams are scheduled for the following months:

• September 2026 (for students from previous academic years) written
• September 2026 (for students from previous academic years) oral
• during the teaching break between October and November 2026: written exam for students attending this academic year ONLY
• December 2026 (for all students) written
• December 2026 (for all students) oral
• January 2027 (for all students) written 
• January 2027 (for all students) oral
  
• March 2027 (for all students) written
• March 2027 (for all students) oral
• May 2027 (for all students) written
• May 2027 (for all students) oral
• late June – early July 2027 (for all students) written
• July 2026 (for all students) oral

 

The use of AI is prohibited for assessment purposes. Any use constitutes a violation of academic integrity. During the written examination, all devices must be handed in to the teacher's desk.

Teaching tools

"Virtuale", the University's repository, will be used to share tools to support teaching: power points summarizing the contents of the lessons, pdf files of sources and proposed readings.

 

Students with learning disorders and\or temporary or permanent disabilities: please, contact the office responsible (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students [http://] ) as soon as possible so that they can propose acceptable adjustments. The request for adaptation must be submitted in advance (15 days before the exam date) to the lecturer, who will assess the appropriateness of the adjustments, taking into account the teaching objectives.

 

Office hours

See the website of Tommaso Duranti